Goal Oriented

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about things I’d like to accomplish in life. I’m working on putting together a long-term plan, but in the meantime, I’ve established a few things I’d like to tackle in the short term. I think this will be a good start.

Golf
I want to learn to golf. I’m the worst. THE WORST. I love going to the driving range and hitting balls for a few hours, but I’ve never really made the transition to the course regularly. So, I’m committing to taking a few lessons and seeing if I can improve. Let’s face facts, I’m never ever going to be a scratch golfer, but I would like to at least feel comfortable heading out for 9 holes.

Egypt
I’ve been fascinated by ancient Egyptian history since I was a young girl. So much so that in my early 20’s I volunteered as a docent at the Field Museum in the ancient Egyptian exhibits. The training I went through for that (it was really extensive) was one of the most fun and interesting classes I’ve ever taken. I like to think that this obsession has something to do with my mom taking me to see the traveling King Tut exhibit in 1977 when I was a tiny baby, but I can’t be sure. Whatever the reason, it’s always been a passion of mine for a very long time and I’m ready to do something about it. I really need to go to Egypt and see the pyramids for myself. This is not an easy undertaking. Firstly, it costs a fortune to travel to Africa, so I’m going to have to start saving now. Secondly, Andrew doesn’t really want to go. He’s worried about safety (I’m way more wild!) and has other places he’d like to see first. So I’m putting together my little Egypt fund and I’m going to keep saving until I can go, even if it’s by myself!

LanguageI’m pretty good with the English language. Not perfect, but I like words and really enjoy learning new vocabulary. You know what I’m lousy at? Foreign languages. I took four years of Spanish in school. I remember next to nothing. I completed an entire learn Japanese on tape class. I can say handbag and ice cream. No more. I’m going to make an effort to learn a language. Spanish is the most logical (and usable) choice, but I haven’t quite decided yet. Whatever my choice, I’m committed to seeing it through.

Fencing
Do not laugh. I took a few fencing classes once when I lived in Chicago. I LOVED it. So fun, great exercise, and a kinda unique. I stopped because I was busy and I let other things (not nearly as fun) take precedence. So, I’m going to start from the beginning again and take some more lessons. En Garde!

Volunteer
I miss volunteering. I miss helping people. I miss feeling like I’m doing something really productive for the universe. I used to volunteer with Special Olympics and it was so fulfilling in a way that work, just isn’t. I don’t have the kind of life where I can regularly schedule something without letting people down, but I’d like to find a volunteer opportunity that would fit with my crazy schedule, so I can get back into the swing of things.

Friends
I’m going to pledge to be a better friend to my current friends and make an effort to meet new ones. I established last week that I’m a terrible long-distance friend and I know there are a million ways I could be better. So I’m going to try. I can’t promise constant contact, but I think I can handle a call/email/IM a few times a week. Conversely, I want to try to make some new friends here in LA. I’ve been pretty good lately, but I could be much better. I just need to take that extra step when I meet someone. It’s a skill we learn in preschool, I think I can try to use it.

So that’s it. I have thousands of goals, but these are the things I’m going to try to work on for now. What would yours be?

3 Responses to “Goal Oriented”

I remember going to the 1977 traveling King Tut exhibit too! Only ours was in Toronto.
And I’d love to know a little bit more about the automatic generator that created the “possibly related post: â€¢ God Made Us Sisters; Prozac Made Us Friends â…”!!